


Masquerade

by jane_x80



Category: NCIS, Stargate SG-1
Genre: Coming Out, Costume Parties & Masquerades, M/M, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-09
Updated: 2019-12-09
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:29:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,890
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21727558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jane_x80/pseuds/jane_x80
Summary: Ellie is invited to go to a holiday charity event - a masquerade ball - by an old friend from the NSA who needs a date for an obligatory evening. She agrees and she even has the perfect dress for it. But when she is there, surprisingly, she spots a familiar face.ForDay 8 of the 2019 Happy Holidays Challenge on LiveJournal, the theme is Holiday Charity Event. A story in collaboration with Red_Pink_Dots and her fabulous artwork.
Relationships: Anthony DiNozzo/Jack O'Neill, Ellie Bishop & Anthony DiNozzo
Comments: 104
Kudos: 859





	Masquerade

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Red_Pink_Dots](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Red_Pink_Dots/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Art for Masquerade](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21705715) by [Red_Pink_Dots](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Red_Pink_Dots/pseuds/Red_Pink_Dots). 



> This story is one that was inspired by a photo that ma cherie [Red_Pink_Dots](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Red_Pink_Dots/pseuds/Red_Pink_Dots) sent me of a very dressed up Ellie Bishop. So RPD and I started throwing around ideas for a story. As in previous years, we collaborated to create a combination of artwork and story that fit today's challenge theme, Holiday Charity Event. We discussed the plot, the theme, and had so much fun, the way we always do.
> 
> To be honest, this year things have been quite challenging for me, and the fact that there are any holiday themed stories at all is totally a credit to RPD and her wonderful friendship, support, and love. I love you ma cherie! You are always my Elton <3 <3 <3
> 
> The song I listened to for this was [Masquerade](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Bn4BAlp8NQ), from The Phantom of the Opera.

[](https://i.imgur.com/fTrbzf4.png)

There were days when Ellie wondered if switching from being an NSA Analyst to an NCIS Field Agent had been a good decision. After all, Jake hadn’t liked the move she made, and now her marriage to him had ended. Not that she was blaming NCIS for the divorce, but it certainly didn’t help. And the thing about the NSA was that everything always felt like it was a level removed from her own reality. If she found out about a terrorist cell, or some other nefarious scheme to undermine the government of her country, she sent it on and someone else took care of the problem. All she did was spot the patterns and report any irregularities. But now, as a field agent instead of an analyst, she was the one people sent information to and she was part of a team that were the boots on the ground, taking the action necessary to stop whatever needed to be stopped. And sometimes, that layer of separation was something she missed terribly.

Conversely, working for NCIS and being a field agent was rewarding because that layer of separation was removed. She wasn’t just pointing out problems. She was a big part of the active portion of resolving said issues. And that was rewarding in a whole different way. So most of the days, Ellie loved working for NCIS and enjoyed it more than she had being an NSA Analyst. Just don’t ask her which she preferred if the MCRT was hot on a case because they were a bunch of obsessive people, all four of them. So there were times when she could do with a break from the intensity of their work.

So when Ellie’s old friend from her days at the NSA called, asking her if she could do him a very great favor and accompany him to a charity gala, at first Ellie thought that she should decline. After all, she was just recently divorced, and it wasn’t like she was particularly good company, but Josh had just been dumped by his girlfriend and was technically, in an even worse place than she was. Besides, Josh was a good friend and had been from when she first started at the NSA, and he had been one of the people who believed in her despite all of her acknowledged quirkiness, before she had made a name for herself. So in a way, she felt like she owed him her own support in his time of need.

Josh was now higher up in the organization – how high up, she wasn’t supposed to know, they were still the NSA after all, and she wasn’t anymore. But he was high up enough that he had to make some public appearances. This was one of the command performances that he would have to go to, and tickets had been distributed to selected personnel. Unfortunately for him, he had been one of them. It was a charity gala and would be filled with high level members of the various alphabet soup agencies, politicians, all branches of the military, and such. And it would not do for him to go stag. He needed a plus one, and Ellie, Ellie, won’t you do an old friend a solid and go with him so he won’t have to be humiliated in public?

“I’ll buy you a really expensive dinner before the event!” he knew her well enough to know that bribing her with food was always the way to go. “Someplace that’s really cool.”

Ellie sighed and agreed. “Fine, Josh. You’re right, I’ll go with you,” she shook her head, already kicking herself for her own gullibility and inability to turn away a friend in need. “When is it?”

“Tomorrow night?” Josh squeaked.

“ _What?_ ” Ellie shrieked. “Tomorrow night?”

“Yeah. It’s a benefit to raise money and awareness for the plight of the at risk LGBTQ+ youth. All proceeds are going to several different shelters around DC, and an organization that’s working to create more legislation that would protect the rights of LGBTQ+ folk. And some of the funds is to be used at these shelters to have special holiday menus and have presents for those in need, when Christmas rolls around in a couple of weeks.”

Ellie sighed. It was a worthy cause.

“OK. What’s the dress code?”

“Well… it’s a bit of a mash up. Masquerade ball slash black tie sort of thing?” Ellie could see Josh grimacing at it.

“What do you mean a masquerade ball slash black tie sort of thing?”

“I mean, you could just wear normal black tie clothes, which is what I intend to wear, I’m wearing a tux, or you could dress up in something more extravagant and more masquerade-y.”

“Like with a mask and shit?”

“I don’t think masks are necessary. But some of the main sponsors of the event are fashion designers, so they had a whimsical theme,” Josh explained.

“So some people might be in masks?” Ellie asked.

“I guess.”

“Are you wearing a mask?”

“No,” Josh shuddered. “I’m really not one for these big events, Ellie. You know that.”

Ellie laughed at that. “Well, you shouldn’t have climbed so high up in the ranks then, Josh.”

“Seriously,” Josh agreed with her.

“OK fine, I’m in.”

“You’re a lifesaver, Ellie!” Josh exclaimed.

“I want a really fabulous dinner.”

“Of course,” Josh promised. “I’ll pick you up at seven?”

“Fine. I’ll see you tomorrow, and I’ll call if something comes up and work and I have to give this a miss.” Ellie didn’t bother telling Josh her new address because, well, he worked for the NSA so of course he would know her address. And if he didn’t, then he could certainly find out.

“Are we done with personal phone calls?” Gibbs barked from his table.

“Yes, Gibbs,” Ellie jumped, turning guiltily back to her screen.

Other than Tony who was on a coffee run, they were all working on finishing up the paperwork for the case they had just solved, so with any luck, the team wouldn’t be called in to work this weekend. It sucked, sometimes, working for the MCRT because even though they might not be on call, often, they would still be the team called in to work cases because Gibbs had an inability to say no to a case. She, Tony and McGee often complained about this in private. It was hell on all of their private lives. Not that she would blame her divorce on just the job. All kinds of things had factored into the demise of her marriage. But it definitely did not help that their hours were complete hell, and the entire team was subject to Gibbs’ practically absolute authority.

Luckily for them, at the end of the day, Gibbs told them that he had taken them off rotation for the weekend and that unless something dire was going down, they would not be called in to work. Tony whooped out loud and ran out of the bullpen, his backpack banging on his back, right away.

“I guess he has big plans?” McGee wondered.

“It’s DiNozzo,” Gibbs rolled his eyes, as if it was an answer.

Ellie and McGee exchanged a dubious look, but decided not to push their luck and instead they both went home. Ellie looked through her closet, trying to figure out what she could wear to a black tie slash masquerade event. Most of her clothes were practical and / or unassuming. Her older clothes, dating back to her days at the NSA tended to be boring. Nobody wanted people to notice NSA analysts so her clothes had been purchased with that in mind. And besides, Ellie didn’t really have that kind of a personality. She did much prefer to do the analysis or do the work rather than stand out in a crowd, if she could help it. And any new clothes she’d bought once she became a field agent for NCIS tended to be comfortable, easy to move in, and low maintenance. It wasn’t like she would have a ton of time hand washing or ironing her clothes with the kind of hours that Gibbs made them work. Tony and McGee had also taught her that she needed clothes that could be stuffed into her go bag for days at a time, and not be completely wrinkled by the time she needed it. So, definitely not clothes appropriate for a masquerade slash black tie event. She didn’t have anything suitable, really. Since her divorce, she hadn’t exactly gone shopping. She knew people who tended to change their looks after a break up – change their hair, buy new clothes and shoes. But she was more of the stay home, lick her wounds and do nothing until she figured things out type. She was still in the figuring things out phase, so she hadn’t changed anything quite yet.

She wasn’t exactly hopeful about finding something suitable in her closet, in all honesty, and would probably have to go shopping in the morning. But she had a logical mind and the kind of personality that wouldn’t allow her to be anything but thorough, so she went through her closet to ensure that she could eliminate everything she owned. It was only logical.

But at the very back of her closet, she found a dress, still in the garment bag from the store. She unzipped the bag and gasped, smiling at it. She had bought this dress for one of Jake’s lawyer type functions years ago, having fallen in love with it when she tried it on at the store, but when she brought it home, Jake had thought that it was too ostentatious and outrageous for the party they were supposed to be going to. He’d suggested that she should return the dress, but somehow Ellie had never found the time to do it, especially since she loved it so much. Ellie had to think for a moment whether she had truly agreed with Jake that the dress was too whatever it was he thought it was, or if she had just not wanted to make a big deal out of it, but it was so long ago that she truly couldn’t remember which it was. She probably wasn’t objective enough at this point to know the truth anyway. It was easy enough to put the blame on Jake because he was the one who had cheated on her.

But anyway. The dress was perfect. Ellie tried it on to make sure that it still fit – which of course it did. Her dress size hadn’t changed since high school, which she had to be thankful for given her tendencies to snack. She hung the dress back up in the closet and the rest of the evening, her eyes kept straying towards it, and she would even go over to the closet to pet it once in a while. She couldn’t deny it. She was looking forward to showing the dress off at Josh’s thing the next day. She thought that she should definitely splurge and shop for new shoes to go with the fabulous dress in the morning. She was a single woman going out on a night on the town. Surely she could allow herself the luxury of some shoe shopping. And maybe she would pamper herself and get a mani-pedi while she was out. Yes. That would definitely be something she should do.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Josh knocked on her door at seven sharp the next evening, he stood and gawked at her when she opened the door. Ellie smiled at him, blushing when he stammered, complimenting her. She did look good, though. The dress fit her perfectly, as if it had been tailored to her form – which it hadn’t. It was a metallic silver material, almost gold tinged with diamond-like sequins stitched into the dress. Long pale feathers completed the look. On her feet were high heeled pumps that glittered, matching the dress, her new purchase from earlier in the day. Instead of a mask, she had made her face up dramatically – heavy mascara giving her eyes more depth, stark rouge to call out her cheekbones, and a soft lipstick that made her lips look glossy and smooth. On the index finger of her right hand, she had on a ring with a glittery cubic zirconia on it. It had been her grandmother’s prized possession, and she never had occasion to wear it, and it fit so perfectly with the dress so she had been pleased to be able to wear it. It was the only piece of jewelry that she wore, deciding that the dress was – as Tony would say – bling enough without her putting on earrings or a necklace.

She knew that she was looking her best. And maybe it was more than just the clothes that she was wearing. She _felt_ sexy and mysterious, and she thought that what she felt internally was reflected externally as well.

“You look amazing,” Josh told her, leaning in to kiss her cheek. “I didn’t know what to get for a masquerade slash black tie event, so I got you these.” He handed her a large bouquet of long-stemmed roses, each bloom almost as big as Ellie’s hand.

“Thank you,” she smiled. “Come in and let me put these in water.”

She found a vase and put the roses in them, and decided she would take one of the stems with her. The stems were not thorny, so she thought the flower would complete her look and give her a stark splash of color without overshadowing the dress.

“Ready?” Josh offered her his arm.

“I was born ready,” Ellie told him, taking his arm.

She couldn’t help but giggle at herself, thinking that the more she hung out with her NCIS teammates, the more she sounded like them because that response was pure DiNozzo. Something he would say and Gibbs would smack him for, which was probably why he said it in the first place. The MCRT team dynamics was something she was still learning to navigate, because the connections between them were old and ingrained, and everyone had gone through a lot in the years before she had joined the team. She was learning to see beyond what the men allowed people to see, and what was beneath it all. She was certain that she would one day be able to piece together the ultimate puzzle that was NCIS’s Major Case Response Team.

Josh rolled his eyes, and they left. First, he took her to one of the most exclusive restaurants in DC, one where reservations were backlogged several months.

Ellie raised her eyebrows at him after they were seated. “Who’d you kill to get this table?” she asked.

“I just inconvenienced them a little,” Josh grinned at her. “No need for fatalities.”

“No seriously,” Ellie rolled her eyes.

“Seriously,” Josh sighed. “I made these reservations months ago. I knew I had this event and Vonnie was supposed to go with me. But then… she ended things with me last week.”

“Shit, Josh,” Ellie sighed. “We’re a couple of overdressed idiots, right?”

“We won’t be the only overdressed idiots once we get to the event,” Josh told her brightly.

“Good point,” Ellie agreed.

They had a lovely meal – an elaborate and multi-course tasting menu that made Ellie vibrate with happiness at the memories that it evoked and new memories that she would make based on associating things with this meal – and Josh asked her to tell him all about being a field agent so he could live vicariously through her. It was a good time, and Ellie was reminded that she did still have friends even though she wasn’t still married to Jake. She didn’t have to be alone to figure things out. It was nice.

When they got to the venue, the party was already in full swing. The ballroom was lavishly decorated with a mash up of Christmas decorations and masquerade type things, in a way that worked really well, highlighting that the event was a holiday charity event. Josh grabbed each of them a champagne flute and they toasted each other. They walked around the ballroom so Josh could make the rounds and greet the people he had to greet, all the while he was complaining and whining about the need for such a farce. Even if the event itself was for a good cause. They spoke to different people, some Ellie knew from her time before, some she knew from her time at NCIS, and some she didn’t know at all. It was very exciting because it seemed that there was a great mix of people dressed in conventional black tie, and those that were more masquerade oriented. There were even some masks involved.

Once they had done the circuit, Ellie filled a plate with finger foods and parked herself and Josh in a prime spot for people watching. They commented on the different costumes and the people who were wearing them.

A couple caught Ellie’s eye. It was two men dancing together on the ballroom floor. And while it was becoming more common to see at least one or two gay couples, in general for these kinds of functions, it was rare. If anybody was out, it seemed to Ellie as if she would see gay couples openly dancing at these things, but usually they would both be women. A lesbian couple. But this couple, both were indeed men.

One of them was dressed in his Air Force service dress uniform, and Ellie saw that he was a one star general. His partner was dressed all in black – tight black pants, a loose silk black shirt, a sword sheathed by his side, shiny black boots that came almost up to his knees, a wide brimmed black hat and a black mask. Josh caught the direction of her gaze. He plucked a canape from Ellie’s plate, sidling closer to her.

“General Jack O’Neill,” he murmured in her ear. “Air Force. Don’t let the one star fool you, though. The man has the ear of the president, and what he does is so classified that nobody in the NSA can tell you what it is he does.”

“ _Really?_ ” Ellie’s eyes widened.

“Didn’t know that he was seeing someone, though.”

“Nobody’s surprised that his date is a man?” Ellie asked. “Not that it’s any kind of problem. I was just wondering given how things can be in the military.”

Josh shrugged. “I think, with the kind of reputation that Jack O’Neill has, he can date whoever he likes and there wouldn’t be any ramifications or fallout with regard to his career.”

“Huh,” Ellie put a piece of food in her mouth and chewed thoughtfully as she watched them dance.

The general was leading the other man deftly around the dance floor, and the masked man was responding well, as if it wasn’t his first time dancing with the man. In fact the way they moved together made her think that this was not a new or casual relationship. There was a kind of familiarity with how their bodies moved against each other and with each other. The kind that did not come with a first date.

“I think they’re a real couple,” Ellie remarked. “I don’t think this is a first date, or you know, someone casual for the general.”

“Agreed,” Josh nodded. “They move together better than I ever did with Vonnie. Maybe that was a sign.”

“Oh, Josh…” Ellie put a hand on his arm in sympathy.

“I know… I need to get over her,” Josh sighed. He kept his eyes on the general and his dance partner. “I think his partner’s supposed to be Zorro?”

“Makes sense,” Ellie agreed. Something about the general’s dance partner caught her attention though. Something niggled in her mind, burrowing in and buzzing around, a thought that wasn’t truly realized yet. “I feel like I know that guy.”

“Who? Zorro?” Josh was looking elsewhere now, and turned back to look at her.

“Yeah,” Ellie shrugged. “There’s something familiar about him.”

“Well, I could probably find out?” Josh offered.

“Nah,” Ellie smiled. “If he wants to stay anonymous, given how so many people still are about LGBTQ folk, we shouldn’t out him. Given the general’s age, I’m guessing his partner is probably not some hot young twink.”

“Although the general might have a taste for young men,” Josh grinned. “He’s kind of a DILF. Maybe a hot young twink would just snap him up.”

Ellie rolled her eyes. “I don’t know… they’re not dating casually. If it’s a serious relationship, and this general lives up to his reputation, I don’t see him being with some pretty young thing.”

“Zorro could be really pretty under the mask. I don’t know. What do you think?”

Ellie stared at Zorro, whose full lips stretched into a sly grin, dimples creasing his cheeks, visible since the mask only covered his eyes. She cocked her head, wishing she had surveillance equipment so she could zoom into the quarry closer. At this angle… it kind of looked like… No, she shook her head. Couldn’t be. There was no way. She shook her head again to dispel that thought because, it was definitely impossible.

Wasn’t it?

“You look like you’ve been hit by a truck,” Josh elbowed her gently.

“I swear…” Ellie started to give voice to her thought, but then she shook her head. Even if it was who she thought it was, she wasn’t going to out him if he wasn’t ready to come out. It wasn’t right.

Josh gave a smile and slung his arm around her shoulder, picking up another bite of food off her plate. “You’re a good person, you know that, Ellie?” he nudged her. “You do know who he is but you’re not going to say a word.”

“He should come out when he’s ready,” Ellie smiled up at him. “Besides, I could be completely wrong.”

“He has a nice ass,” Josh remarked. “He must work out.”

Ellie giggled at that. They turned their attention away from the general and his masked partner, commenting on others. Ellie was busy refilling her plate when Josh nudged her.

“Hey, look,” he whispered urgently. “Zorro and General O’Neill are socializing.”

Ellie turned, and saw those lips stretch into a familiar blinding smile, dimples on full display, when Zorro and O’Neill shook hands with what looked to be a US Navy Admiral and his wife. “That’s Admiral Burman,” she whispered, recognizing the admiral.

Zorro pulled his hat off and tugged the mask off, grinning as he fluffed his hair up. Ellie could see him mouthing something about ‘hat hair’ and the general smiled fondly at him, ruffling his hair and kissing his cheek. Zorro left off the mask but slipped the hat back on his head at a jaunty angle.

“I guess he’s outing himself,” Josh commented.

Ellie couldn’t contain the grin as she realized that she had been right. She should’ve pegged him immediately. It wasn’t the first time she’d seen him with his face obscured. She should have definitely recognized him, no matter what.

“I don’t know him,” Josh frowned. “Even though you do. Who is he?”

“My Senior Field Agent. Come on,” Ellie put her half-filled plate down, grabbed Josh’s wrist and dragged him over to the couple, arriving just as the Admiral and his wife moved away. “Tony!” Ellie called out, Josh dragging behind her.

The unmasked Zorro – Tony – turned, a questioning look on his face and his mouth fell open as he stared at Ellie. “Bishop?” he croaked.

“I love your costume!” she enthused.

“Uh, thanks,” Tony was still looking at her in shock. Ellie realized that there was maybe even some fear in his expression.

“Who’s your friend, Tony?” General O’Neill put his arm around Tony protectively. Maybe even possessively.

“Um… my new probie,” Tony replied, although he was still staring at Ellie. “Eleanor Bishop.”

“ProBish!” O’Neill exclaimed, holding his hand out. “I’m Jack O’Neill.”

“Ellie Bishop,” Ellie grasped his hand and shook it. “This is my friend Josh.”

Tony seemed to recover from the shock. “Josh. No last name? NSA?” he teased.

Josh grinned. “If I told you, I’d have to kill you,” he retorted.

Both Tony and O’Neill rolled their eyes at that. Then Ellie and Tony just stared at each other again, until O’Neill sighed and nudged Tony.

“I didn’t know you were coming to this,” Tony murmured.

“Josh invited me yesterday.”

“Yesterday?” Tony gave Josh a look, sizing him up.

“We’re just friends,” Josh piped up, and it made Ellie roll her eyes. Tony was giving Josh the protective older brother look.

“Children…” O’Neill sighed.

Ellie giggled at that. “So you’ve heard of me, I guess?” she turned to the general, who, upon closer examination, was quite the stud, despite the salt and pepper of his hair. He had dimples creasing his own cheeks, and there were attractive laugh lines that crinkled the corner of his brown eyes. He was tanned and fit, and the dress uniform certainly accentuated his form.

“Why, because I called you ProBish?” O’Neill chuckled.

“Yes.”

“You should praise the lord that your last name doesn’t start with a ‘Mc’,” he grinned.

“Oh, the McNames are some of my favorites, to be honest,” Ellie confessed. “Tony can get extremely creative with those.”

O’Neill laughed at that. “I’m very pleased to meet you, Agent Bishop,” he told her. “Tony talks about all of you all the time.”

“Ellie, please,” Ellie told him. It was weird to her that Tony’s boyfriend would call her by her title.

“And I’m Jack.”

They clinked glasses and the four of them stood and made small talk. Tony started out a little jittery, Ellie could see him kind of vibrating in place the way he did when he was nervous, but Jack took his hand, raised it up to his face and pressed a soft kiss to the back of it. Ellie saw him squeezing Tony’s hand comfortingly and saw Tony give him an almost imperceptible nod, and he visibly calmed himself down after that.

After a moment, Jack caught the attention of someone else, and he whispered in Tony’s ear before smiling at Ellie and Josh.

“Excuse me for a moment, would you? Duty calls,” he shrugged. “And Josh, I think you might come in handy with this discussion. You don’t mind if Tony steals a dance with your date, do you?”

Josh shook his head.

Tony gave Jack a slightly panicked look, but Jack only leaned in to kiss him gently, and push him towards Ellie before he dragged Josh away, his expression serene. Tony stared at them for a moment before he turned to Ellie.

“May I have this dance?” he offered his arm courteously.

“Thank you,” Ellie resisted the urge to curtsey. She was all gussied up and Tony was Zorro in the flesh – although he had been unmasked now – and somehow it made her feel like she needed to behave differently.

The song was some kind of waltz and Ellie knew the basic steps of it, but Tony knew what he was doing, leading her around the dance floor, twirling her and everything. She could tell though, that he wanted to speak to her but that he was hesitant. Finally, when they were just slow dancing instead of executing waltz steps, she tightened her arms, hugging him as they swayed.

“You know I don’t care that you’re dating a guy, right?” she murmured.

Tony stiffened for a moment before he relaxed again, and he nodded.

“I won’t say anything to anyone,” she tried to assure him.

“No, I know that,” Tony finally met her eyes, a small smile tugging at his lips. “I know that. I trust you. It’s just…”

“You don’t have to decide anything or do anything, you know that, right?” Ellie said, keeping her tone kind. “It’s totally your business who you love.”

Tony blew out a loud sigh and leaned his forehead on her shoulder. “That’s just it, though,” he muttered, before he straightened up. “I wore the mask because I thought I wasn’t going to out myself, but then Jack’s friends didn’t seem to care that he was seeing a guy. So I thought, I could maybe do it, too. The mask was the way I hedged my bet – if I felt like I could do it, I’d take it off. And if not, then no one would be the wiser.”

“Ah,” Ellie nodded. “And you took off the mask.”

“It’s out now,” Tony agreed. “I just wasn’t prepared to see anyone I knew well here, other than Jack.”

“Did it make it feel safer?”

Tony nodded. “I know that DC’s a small town and everyone knows everyone else and that by Monday certainly, everyone will know that I’m…”

“Gay?” Ellie supplied.

“Technically, bisexual,” Tony shrugged. “If anybody’s counting.”

Ellie grinned. “Well, they won’t hear it from me, OK?”

Tony gave her a small smile. “I appreciate that, Bish,” he told her. “Although I don’t want you to feel like this is some dirty secret of mine you need to keep. We did this tonight because we’re both tired of hiding who we are to each other. I’m not Jack’s dirty little secret.”

“That’s beautiful, Tony.”

“Don’t make this into some sappy love story,” Tony rolled his eyes.

“Isn’t it, though?” Ellie asked.

Adorably, Tony blushed at that. “I guess,” he shrugged.

“I’m guessing that neither of you would risk yourselves if this relationship wasn’t important to you…?” Ellie prodded.

Tony nodded, his face flaming.

“It’s a good thing, Tony,” Ellie smiled up at him. “I’m so happy for you.”

“I found a ring box in one of Jack’s drawers,” Tony whispered, his eyes wide.

“Do you think… he’s going to propose?” Ellie gasped, her heart soaring with happiness.

“Shhhh!” Tony slapped his hand on her mouth. “I don’t know. Maybe? I mean, it’s been three years since we got together,” Tony shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“Do you want him to propose?” Ellie asked carefully.

Tony’s face flushed again. “I don’t know,” he repeated, although Ellie could see that he wanted to say yes.

“If you’re honest with each other and make sure you communicate properly with each other, and you love each other, then if he proposes, you should marry him if that’s what you want,” Ellie told him.

“Work’ll be weird,” Tony muttered.

“We work for Gibbs. When is it not weird?” Ellie quipped.

Tony laughed at that. “You’re right. Whatever happens next, it won’t change how I feel for Jack.”

Ellie pulled him into another tight hug. “I’m _so_ happy for you,” she told him enthusiastically. “You deserve to be happy.”

Tony blushed at that and tried to shrug it off. “You want to get a snack?” he gestured to the buffet table.

“Oh thank god,” Ellie sighed. “You know me too well.”

They were sharing snacks when Jack and Josh came back. Jack offered Tony his arm and Tony took it with a pleased smile. Josh danced with Ellie a few times, and she even danced with Jack once where she gave him her best impression of Gibbs’ death glare.

“Are you giving me the shovel talk without using any words?” Jack asked her, looking at her with amusement.

“I might be small, but I pack a mean punch,” she growled.

“He’s important to me, too,” Jack assured her, smiling softly at her. “I love him.”

“See that you don’t hurt him,” she told him curtly, before they came to an understanding and the rest of the dance was pleasant. It was only when she got home later that she realized that she had threatened a one star general whose reputation was so fierce that apparently even the President listened to his advice. She giggled to herself, glad that that hadn’t occurred to her earlier or it would have made her shovel talk less effective.

When she got to work on Monday morning, Abby and McGee were whispering at McGee’s desk. She greeted them and dumped her things down. It didn’t look like Tony had arrived yet, and there was a coffee cup on Gibbs’ desk that signaled that he was probably already in the building, even though he wasn’t at his desk.

“Pssst!” Abby hissed at her, beckoning her over.

Ellie pressed the button to boot up her computer before she went over to McGee’s desk. “What’s up?” she asked.

“The rumor mill is buzzing!” Abby said in a stage whisper.

“What now?” Ellie rolled her eyes.

“Rumor has it that Tony – our Tony DiNozzo – is dating someone high up in our chain of command,” Abby whispered.

“The SecNav?” McGee suggested, the Secretary of the Navy, Sarah Porter.

“No,” Abby shook her head. “It’s supposed to be a guy. Tony’s secretly dating a guy.”

“ _Gibbs?_ ” McGee gasped.

“Be serious, McGee,” Abby punched his arm. “Of course Tony isn’t dating Gibbs.”

“What’s wrong with Tony dating Gibbs?” Ellie shrugged. “I think Tony can date whomever he wants, man or woman.”

“No, no, of course he can,” Abby agreed. “But Gibbs would never break Rule Twelve.”

McGee and Bishop exchanged skeptical glances because even though Bishop might be new to Gibbs’ team, even she was aware that Gibbs applied his own rules very selectively to himself.

“Tony wouldn’t be interested in dating a guy,” McGee objected. “I just don’t see it.”

“Why not?” Abby asked. “Because he’s worked with you all these years and he hasn’t hit on you?”

Ellie rolled her eyes. “You two are ridiculous. If Tony is dating someone and he’s happy, I don’t give a flying fuck who they are or what gender they might be,” she told them. “He’s my friend. I’m happy if he’s happy. You should be, too.”

Abby and McGee did both have the decency to blush and look ashamed at that. And then Gibbs and Tony walked into the bullpen together, Tony still carrying his backpack and a tray of to go coffee cups, gabbing away to Gibbs who grunted and nodded at him once in a while. Then Gibbs handed him his empty cup and Tony gave him a second, presumably full, cup out of the tray in his hand, without either of them breaking off their conversation. It was a practiced move, one that spoke of years of familiarity and intimacy.

McGee elbowed Abby and she smacked his arm and both Tony and Gibbs stopped and stared at them.

“What?” Tony asked.

“Nothing,” both McGee and Abby chorused at the same time.

Ellie rolled her eyes and went back to her desk where her computer had booted up. Gibbs gave them all a grumpy look before he sat at his desk and ignored them. It wasn’t anything new. Gibbs was probably only on his sixth cup of coffee. He wasn’t usually close to being anything less than grumpy until at least his ninth cup – as Tony had jokingly told her once when she first started.

“Anywayyyy,” Tony drew the word out as he looked at Abby and McGee with suspicion. “That’s what happened,” he directed the words to Gibbs.

“Glad you had a good time,” Gibbs muttered back.

Tony gave him a small, surprised smile. “Me, too,” he agreed.

Abby and McGee exchanged another loaded glance and Ellie rolled her eyes again. Gibbs glared at the team, “Can we get to work sometime today?” he growled.

“Of course, Boss,” McGee stuttered, and Abby scampered off, although Ellie saw her making faces at McGee from the elevator.

Ellie sighed and pulled her phone out. She sent Tony a text to give him a heads up.

 _Rumor mill got it wrong_ , she sent to him. _Abby and McGee think you’re dating a man who’s higher up in our chain of command_.

 _What?_ Came the reply. Tony gave her a questioning look from his desk.

Ellie grimaced and shrugged. _Pretty sure they think you’re dating Gibbs_ , she sent him.

Tony was sipping his coffee when he received the message and Ellie watched as he started coughing, apparently shocked enough to choke on his drink. Gibbs gave him a frown that was both annoyance and concern.

“I’m fine, Boss,” Tony wheezed. “Coffee went down wrong.”

Gibbs rolled his eyes and turned back to his computer.

 _I feel insulted that the rumor mill can’t even get it right that I’m dating a hot as fuck one star general_ , when Tony was recovered, the message came through to Ellie’s phone.

She snickered softly and gave Tony a mischievous nod. _Are you saying Gibbs isn’t hot as fuck?_

 _You shut your face before Gibbs hears of this and smacks both of us to kingdom come_ , Tony wrote back, and Ellie could see that the tips of his ears were red.

 _You can be in a relationship and still appreciate someone else who’s hot_ , she wrote back.

 _Well, then you can be the one to tell Gibbs that you think his blue eyes are hot and he’s your kind of DILF_ , Tony caught her eye and stuck his tongue out at her. _Get to work before you get us in trouble_.

She gave him a nod, but both she and Tony were smiling when they turned to their computer screens.

For the rest of the day, the stories surrounding Tony and his alleged male boyfriend kept changing. First it was a guy in their chain of command, and a pool opened on whether Tony was dating Gibbs or Vance. It didn’t help that Vance came down into the bullpen, nodded to everyone and turned his attention to Tony.

“Everything good with you?” he asked Tony. “Your weekend went well?”

Tony gave him a bright smile. “All good, sir. No complaints.”

“Good man,” he nodded, before he briskly strode away.

Then the story was that he was dating an US Navy Admiral. Then he was supposed to be dating some Senator or other. Ellie kept giggling to herself as the stories became more and more outrageous. On the plus side though, there wasn’t very much negativity about the fact that Tony was supposed to be dating a man. That part wasn’t in dispute and wasn’t making much more than a few of the more bigoted people clutch their pearls. Abby and McGee were both firmly in the camp that Tony was dating Gibbs, regardless of the way the chatter kept changing.

At the end of the day, an Air Force one star general walked into the bullpen in his dress blues. He marched up to Gibbs, his cover under his arm, and shook his hand, greeting him familiarly.

Tony’s green eyes were wide with surprise, and O’Neill gave him a wide smile which he eagerly returned.

“Agent Gibbs, do you mind if I steal Tony to take him out to dinner?” he turned back to Gibbs. “If you guys have a case going, I’ll bring him back in an hour and he’ll have takeout for the team.”

“No case,” Gibbs told him gruffly. “You can have him for the night.”

“Thank you kindly,” Jack walked over to Tony and leaned down, kissing him right on the lips. “Hi, baby,” he greeted Tony.

“Hi,” Tony smiled shyly at him. He gave Gibbs a questioning look, and received an exasperated jerk of Gibbs’ head, signaling he should head out. Tony started packing his things and tidying his desk, powering his computer down. Jack leaned against Tony’s desk and gave McGee a fierce glare. He had his own version of Gibbs’ death glare, Ellie saw, and it was pretty effective because McGee turned away, blushing furiously.

“Hey Ellie,” Jack smiled at her.

“Hey Jack,” she grinned back. “Way to make a splash.”

“I figure if people are going to talk, they should at least get it right,” he rolled his eyes. “No one even said Air Force, for fuck’s sake.”

Ellie giggled. “There were some doozies,” she agreed.

“ _That’s_ your complaint?” Gibbs asked mildly.

“As if Tony would date an Admiral,” Jack sniffed.

“He could’ve been dating a Marine,” Gibbs complained.

“I’m ready,” Tony bounced up, hoisting his backpack onto the table.

Jack took it from him and slung his arm around Tony’s waist. “See you all later,” he waved to Gibbs and Ellie before he and Tony sauntered away, Tony’s arm around his shoulder.

Ellie smiled when she saw the expression on McGee’s face.

“I thought he was dating _you_ , Boss?” McGee stuttered.

Gibbs rolled his eyes. “I’m into _redheads_ , dumbass,” he snarked. “DiNozzo look like a redhead to you? No? There we go.”

“Right, Boss. Of course,” McGee nodded.

“General O’Neill seems like a really nice guy,” Ellie ventured to add.

“Sure,” Gibbs agreed. “But even though O’Neill’s a decent enough guy especially for a flyboy, I still don’t get why Tony can’t date a Marine.”

Ellie couldn’t help but laugh out loud at that. Some days, she definitely, absolutely, loved her job. Especially when the next day, HR and Vance both sent out reminders of NCIS policy of non-discrimination and Tony turned up with a big ‘I definitely had sex last night’ smile, hickeys marked prominently on his neck, and he was finally secure enough to show the world the quiet joy that seemed to fill him.

**Author's Note:**

> Go and check out [RPD's artwork post](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21705715) and give her all the love!
> 
> Hope y'all enjoyed it! Until next time 
> 
> <3  
> -j  
> xoxo

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Art for Masquerade](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21705715) by [Red_Pink_Dots](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Red_Pink_Dots/pseuds/Red_Pink_Dots)




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